Putin Warns of Global Clash as Russia Marks Victory Day | Vantage with Palki Sharma

hello namaskar this is first post and you're watching vantage with me py Sharma [Music] is the US meddling in Indian elections Russia says it is Indian leaders including the Prime Minister have also warned of foreign meddling it has become a common refrain internationally as well countries accuse adversaries of meddling but how serious is the issue in India and will it be investigated we'll discuss meanwhile India's Navy is expanding its presence and changing its tactics with deployments in the South China Sea and participation in a us-led naval Alliance in Russia Victory Day Celebrations as they in they intensify attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure in New Delhi a master class for the Malian foreign minister by India's SJ Shanker a new world record with over $100 billion sent to India in remittances the country's top medical body recommends the ideal diet but Indian food products are under Global scrutiny for contamination why is the food regulator failing us while Belgium is making headlines for offering insurance and pension to se workers why West Asian powers are wooing Pakistan with high level visits and Investments why North macedonia's election result is another blow to the European Union and what is the man versus bear debate that has left the internet divided all this and more coming up the headlines First Chinese president Xi Jinping visits Hungary Budapest is beijing's closest European Union Ally in recent years Hungary has attracted a flood of Chinese projects this is President she's first visit to Europe since 2019 19 Hungary is the last leg of his tour Israel says US President Joe Biden's threat to stop arms is very disappointing Washington has warned that it will halt weapon supplies to Israel if it attacks Rafa but Israel continues to expand its military operation in the southern Gaza City United Nations says around 880,000 people have fled Rafa in the last 3 days the London and Frankfurt stock exchanges hit record highs this comes after the bank of England keeps its interest rate at a 16-year high the bank hinted at a cut in the coming months as inflation cools in the UK on Wednesday Sweden Central Bank reduced borrowing cost for the first time in 8 years Kenyan government inks a deal to end the strike by doctors the strike over pay had started almost 2 months ago it left thousands of patients struggling to find Medical Care under the deal doctors will receive around $26 million in areas over 5 years Romania opens its first crowdfunded hospital more than 300,000 people and nearly 8,000 companies contributed towards the Children's Cancer Hospital Romania spending on public health is among the lowest in the European Union and Miss Teen USA resigns just days after missusa relinquished her crown 17-year-old Uma Sophia shrivastav sites personal reasons for her decision earlier this week Miss USA had resigned to prioritize her Mental Health [Music] [Music] Indian elections have seen many issues inflation jobs reforms Wars we've seen it all but this time there's a new one the issue of foreign interference could foreign agents or Powers be met in India's election a lot of people think so and that includes the prime minister of India but we'll get to that later first let's look at a key Indian partner Russia their spokesperson was asked about the khalistan plot about American claims that Indian officials tried to kill a khalistani separatist listen to the response according to our information so far Washington has not given so far any credible information or evidence that Indian citizens are involved in uh the preparation of killing of some panon the reason is that they try to unbalance the domestic political situation in India in order to make it harder to have the general parliamentary election and that is part of the meddling into India's domestic affairs Russia says where is the evidence they also think the US is trying to meddle in India's elections now just to be clear Russia has its own agenda here to drive a wedge between India and the US plus we talking about Russia a country that has a history of foreign meddling so the source is a bit Shady but the allegation may be worth looking at recently top indan officials have hinted at the same even prime minister Narendra Modi talked about it let me quote from what he said and this is the Indian Prime Minister I can see there is an attempt by some in the world to influence our elections they are not just giving their opinions but are trying to influence our polls but they will not be successful now that is pretty direct the Indian Prime Minister says there is an attempt to meddle he may not have taken names but his foreign minister did that's Dr SJ Shanker he put the blame on Western media yes I get a lot of these noises from the Western press and if they criticize our democracy it's not because they lack information it is because they think they're also political players in our election that is the reason these are unprecedented allegations but where are they coming from is there any evidence of this meddling officially no we've only seen statements from the Prime Minister and the foreign minister but we can guess what they're talking about first is the Western news coverage it's mostly critical of Prime Minister Modi look at this article in the New York Times it accuses him of vilifying India's Muslims or look at this Bloomberg report it says there is speculation that the BJP may win fewer seats than expected apparently that's why markets are volatile reuter said something similar that low turnout low voter turnout and apathy are worries for Modi clearly the government has seen all of this and they do not like it secondly we have seen official Western statements and reports think back to when Delhi chief minister Arin krial was arrested the US released a statement so did the German foreign ministry again this was a key ele issue krial is a major opposition leader in India his party is in power in two states he has access to Indian courts and top lawyers so why did Western Nations comment it was totally unwarranted another example is Canada they accused India of killing a khalistani separatist the claim was made back in September September last year but the arrests came last week right in the middle of India's elections New Delhi has rejected these charges it says no evidence has been shared yet shared with us so let me first make it clear that no specific or relevant evidence or information has been shared by the caned Canadian authorities in regard to this particular matter uh till date with us you will therefore understand a view that the matter is being prejudged when people say X or Y uh obviously there are political interests at work is this what Indian officials are talking about the negative press and statements I'm afraid we can't be sure having said that there are two factors to note here one Western media doubting Indian democracy is not new it's as old as India's democracy this is what the Washington Post wrote way back in 1952 let me quote harod officials trying to put 170 million voters through the pages of democracy find that self-government takes a lot of teaching in this land of high illiteracy and low diet the new York Times also covered this they talked about problems with an illiterate population and this was not surprising most people in the west did not expect Indian democracy to succeed they underestimated the Indian voter and seven decades later they still do look at this article again in the western press I'm quoting the right to vote is held as sacred but polling also indicates that large numbers of Indians are willing to seed civil liberties to support a powerful ruler they see as getting things done the same attitude as if the Indian voter does not care about democracy or civil rights so my point is quite simple the Western press has a history of doing this of criticizing Indian democracy whether it qualifies as intervention is a different question altogether which brings us to the second Factor the global Trend many countries have complained of foreign meddling the US has accused Russia and China Canada has accused India and China and Europe accused Russia so interference is not unimaginable it's also not beyond the west but that is also why Clarity is important all these countries have ordered investigations into foreign meddling some are still under way others have been closed in Canada for example India got a clean chit perhaps New Delhi should do the same go public with the facts and investigate them because these are serious allegations if left unaddressed they could Fester India's strategic autonomy is one of its biggest strengths it allows New Delhi to engage with diverse Partners from Russia to the West we work with all of them and here's the latest example of that take a look at this picture it is from April these are Indian Navy Commandos they call maros that is short for marine Commandos last month they completed a major operation the operation was called Crimson barracuda it was a major drug bust Indian Commando seized 940 kg of Narcotics the mission was a success and Indian troops weren't the only ones involved they were working with an International Coalition called the combined Maritime forces or cmf combined Maritime forces navies from 43 countries are part of the cmf this Coalition protects 3.2 million square miles of international waters this includes key regions from the Red Sea to the Gulf of aen the Arabian Sea the Gulf of Oman and some parts of the Indian Ocean too this cmf this combined force is commanded by the US and the alliance is based out of bahin so why is India's participation news because usually India shies away from military alliances but last year we saw a shift in November 2023 India joined the cmf and this is different from traditional military alliances like NATO where an attack on one member triggers a response from the entire Alliance that's what NATO does the cmf is more flexible there are no political or military mandates the members decide how much they want to get involved now India is actively engaging with them keeping two goals in mind the first one is the Safety and Security of sea lanes and this is critical for India look at these numbers 83% of India's crude and 95% of trade comes through the sea the Indian economy depends on sea Lanes so India must secure them deploy its Navy to boost deterrence against security threats like piracy and terrorism that's the first goal the second goal is countering China in the last decade the Chinese Navy has significantly expanded in size also in presence today China has over 100 warships and submarines capable of operating in the Indian Ocean and this poses a direct challenge to India there is increased surveillance of these Waters experts say China's presence in the Indian Ocean is only increasing at any given time there are at least three Chinese vessels in this region throughout the year around 12 to 15 ships are deployed by China and recent events are proof last month China deployed three vessels to the Indian Ocean Beijing said they were research vessels research ships but everyone knows that these vessels are used for intelligence gathering these are spy ships so India cannot afford to fall behind it needs to respond a strategic shift in the Navy's approach is imperative collaborating with allies helps India to enhance deterrence and to fill gaps you see the Chinese Navy is the largest in the world it has 370 ships and submarines in all 370 what about India from 2014 to 2024 India added only four surface combatants the fleet has increased from 25 to 29 and while India is taking steps to ramp up its Arsenal substantial upgrades will take take time in the interim working with allies gives India more flexibility it can have more targeted deployments and gain leverage over over China and key flash points like the South China Sea in fact earli this week there was uh there was a significant development India deployed three Indian warships in the South China Sea a guided missile destroyer a fleet tanker and an anti-submarine Corvette these three vessels docked in Singapore in Indian naval officers met with their local counterparts there was a statement from New Delhi it said two critical issues were discussed here the maritime security landscape in the region and ways to deal with emerging threats this is what they discussed in recent months the Indian Navy has set an example for the region with its proactive handling of the Red Sea crisis by the month of March this year the Indian Navy had conducted over a dozen operations and saved more than 100 lives more engagements with like-minded allies will only bolster India's credentials as the net security provider in this region [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Applause] [Music] it's Victory Day in Russia Moscow marks it every year on May 9th it celebrates Russia's victory over Nazi Germany now Victory Day has a cult status in Moscow every year there are military parades patriotic pageantry pump pride and of course a speech by Vladimir Putin today we see attempts to distort the truth about World War II it is inconvenient to those who are accustomed to building their essentially Colonial policy on hypocrisy and lies Russia will do everything to prevent a global conflict but at the same time we will not allow anyone to threaten us our strategic forces are always in combat readiness with these words Putin flexed his military muscle showcased his latest weapons and shot off another warning to the West the last time Russia fought European powers it won that's why Victory Day celebrated to mark their win in the second world war in 1941 troops from Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union entire cities were plundered some 27 million people lost their lives virtually every family in Russia was affected including Putin's family but the Soviet army or the Red Army as they were called pushed back they drove the Nazis all the way back to Berlin that's where the nazzi surrendered it ended the second world war in Europe for Russia the day is a powerful symbol of its military prowess of its righteousness of its national identity and Putin has made it a pillar of his rule since 1999 he's rammed up the celebrations he brought back displays of military might tanks and missiles now roll across the Red Square fighter jets fly overhead every year he lays a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier accompanying him our veterans this year's celebrations come as Putin begins his fifth term in power he was joined by dignitaries presidents of former Soviet Nations allies including leaders of Cuba guine BAU and Laos so why is it such a big deal for Putin because it serves his core belief that Russia is great and Invincible Putin draws power from Nostalgia he wants to revive The Cloud of the earth file Soviet Union and what better occasion than Victory Day take the Ukraine war for example when Russia invaded Putin immediately Drew parallels he cited densification of Ukraine as a primary goal he said Ukrainian leaders had cooperate with cooperated with the Nazis he compared this war to the Great Patriotic War and 800 days later he continues to do that we celebrate Victory Day in the context of the special military operation all its participants those who are on the front line on the line of combat contact are our heroes we bow to your perseverance self-sacrifice and dedication all of Russia is with you so Putin is thanking Russian soldiers and he does have a lot to thank them for in the last few months Russia has made several gains in the battlefield they may be modest but their gains nonetheless on Tuesday Russia launched over 70 missiles and drones they struck power stations and energy facilities in Ukraine Kiev and six other cities were affected nine regions plunged Into Darkness it was one of the biggest attacks in weeks the aim was simple to cut Ukraine off the power grid so what explains this rammed up offensive right now for Moscow time is of the essence it is looking to occupy as much territory as possible before Ukraine receives Western Aid so Russia has mobilized more troops it is fighting to capture more towns for the last few weeks it's been trying to capture chassi varar a strategic town in donet Moscow hoped it will it would fall by today May 9th that that would make it a Sweet Victory Day win for them but the town is still standing the Russia hopes to change that in the next few days Ukraine on the other hand is on the offensive it has run out of ammunition its soldiers are exhausted its front lines are faltering Ukraine desperately needs the Western Aid so Moscow is trying to capitalize on that as it marks the 79th Victory Day Celebrations Russia has its eyes set on another victory in Ukraine our next story is about the Maldives India's onetime friendly Island neighbor that has now switched camps the Maldives is coing up to China thanks to their President Mohammad muu mizu's entire political Cloud stems from one campaign India out he made it his mission to remove Indian troops from the Maldives troops who were stationed there to help with search and rescue operations soldiers who were operating helicopters and an aircraft that India had gifted to the Maldives muu wanted them out and he won the presidency with this pitch later he stormed to power in the Parliament as well so it seems quite clear that the Maldives has chosen China and that is fine it is a Sovereign Nation it has the right to pick its allies but perhaps they should be a bit more consistent because for all the loud India out rhetoric they don't seem to be following through earlier this week we told you about the tourism Minister how he implored Indians to keep visiting the Maldives it seems the country can't pick a lane it wants to shun India but also reap the benefits of ties with New Delhi the Maldives has sent their foreign minister to India Musa zamir he seemed quite pleased when he landed in New Delhi yesterday he said he wanted to strengthen ties and experience Indian culture that's the opposite of his president's position but zamir was still trying to portray that everything is normal today the Malian FM had a meeting with his Indian counterpart Dr SJ Shanker now J Shankar is a seasoned Diplomat and he seems to have had enough of mali's flipflops so today he laid out India's position in no uncertain terms Excellency India has been a key provider of development assistance to the Maldives our projects have benefited the lives of uh the people of your country have contributed directly to the quality of life uh the range from infrastructure projects and social initiatives to medical evacuation and health facilities we have also extended financial support on favorable terms in the past India has been a first responder on numerous occasions for mives our cooperation has also enhanced the security and well-being of your country through shared activities equipment provisioning capacity building and training Excellency the world is today passing through a volatile and uncertain period in such times as we saw during covid during natural disasters and economic difficulties close Partnerships with neighbors are of great value you saw what he did there J Shanker brought out the receipts in less than a minute he listed all the ways that India had been there for the males India has given the males about $2 billion in Aid India has invested in infrastructure there from hospitals to highways India has extended loans on favorable terms that's something to think about when partnering with China Beijing also gives loans but no one ever calls the terms favorable loan shark and debt trap are the common associations with chinesee loans the Maldives owes India about $400 million it owes China about 1.4 billion so it is a precarious situation all this explains the mixed Malian messaging the country doesn't want to lose Indian Investments or Indian tourists the tourism money will go a long way in paying off Chinese loans as J Shankar said the partnership with India is of Great Value to the Maldives the maldan foreign minister acknowledged this he expressed his appreciation for India's steadfast support hopefully his president Muhammad muu also gets the message our next story is about a world record a record set by Indians working overseas for the kind of money they sent home more than $100 billion that was the volume of remittances in 2022 and this is a world first no other country has crossed the 100 billion Mark it's a big sum it makes up over 3% of India's GDP so what explains this Surge and how does it help the Indian economy our next report has the answers 111 billion is a significant number that's the value of the remittances sent by Indians working overseas in 2022 the sum surpasses the GDP of several countries like Guatemala Bulgaria Luxembourg Panama Sri Lanka and Myanmar just to name a few crossing the $100 billion Mark is a milestone but this number tells a story too usually the gulf countries make up a large chunk of remittances in India a large number of Indian workers travel to the region usually to find work in construction and related sectors in the last few years these workers have faed well a spike in Energy prices and a boom in demand for migrant workers drove Mo up the remittances from the Gulf but there's a new trend that's picking up it's being driven by Indians living in developed economies and working in high-skilled jobs they now have a 36% share in India's remittances by who are these Indians a large chunk of them are the Indian techies working in countries like the United States the United Kingdom and Singapore the World Bank expects similar levels of contribution in 2024 as well several factors contribute to this trend the first and the most obvious one is cultural Indian workers overseas have a habit of sending some of their earnings back home each month this is for the sustenance of their families that's unlikely to change anytime soon the second Factor are the savings programs overseas Indians like to keep some of their money in India and there's a good reason for that these savings usually in the form of fixed deposits in Banks deliver better interest rates than the west and they are tax exempt while the data about these deposits is hard to come by according to one estimate non-resident Indians or nris have around $143 billion worth of deposits in India and this number is increasing by $10 billion annually sending money home is also getting cheaper thanks to India's digital payments platform UPI or the unified payment system has been opened up for overseas payments too UPI is a real-time money transfer system most recently it was integrated with Singapore's pay now this has led to a boost in crossborder transactions sending money via UPI is cheaper than using Banks and Indians in Singapore are making the most of this by November last year this system was recording around 100 transactions a day and close to 3,000 in a month the Indian government plans to expand UPI to more countries even without this system Indians appear poised to surpass their own record as the World Bank predicts that remittances to India will increase to $135 billion this year now what should Indians eat anything they want may be a popular answer but it's not an ideal answer your diet has a major impact on your health a good diet can keep you healthy a bad one can make you sick we already know that but a new report also says this and it has been published by India's top medical body the icmr or the Indian Council of medical research they found that 56% diseases in India are linked to a bad diet 56% maybe more processed food or too much sugar or not enough nutrients imagine that more than half of all diseases due to food which makes you wonder what exactly qualifies as a good diet what should you what should your plate look like here's what icmr says you should have 100 G of fruits 85 G of pulses egg and meat 35 G of nuts and seeds 27 G of fats and oil 250 g of cereals 300 mL of milk or curd and 400 G of vegetables I know we called it a plate but this is not for just one meal it is for the entire day the icmr says this diet will give you 2,000 calories it is also pretty balanced in nutrients and Beyond this the icmr has given 17 guidelines a few of them stand out like using oils and fats in moderation avoiding protein supplements restricting salt intake and minimizing sugar consumption that last one may sound hard to do how much sugar should you be consuming the icmr says 20 to 25 G in a day now to put that in context 1 teaspoon of sugar is 5.7 G and a can of Coca-Cola has almost 32 G so one can will put you over the limit the icmr has also covered cooking methods and materials they've settled some long-standing debates for example microwave ovens and air fryers the report gives both of them a thumbs up as for cooking material the icmr says Eastern earn vessels are the safest your non-stick pans are safe too but not Beyond 170° C and what about your favorite beverages the report advises tea and coffee in moderation it says caffeine should not exceed 300 G per day and how much is that around three cups as for alcohol it's a strict no not even light drinking but you know what caught our attention the 17th guideline issued by icmr it says read information on labels to make informed choices it may sound like good advice but is that information accurate based on recent developments maybe not Indian products are under the scanner in foreign markets especially Indian spices you may have heard of mdh and Everest these are the biggest Spice producers in India but some of their products have been banned in Hong Kong and Singapore why because they had too much pesticide and that too a cancer causing one same in Europe in The Last 5 Years the EU flagged more than 400 Indian products apparently they were highly contaminated 400 remember we talking about products that had passed Indian quality checks yet they were flagged 21 products had cadmium which increases the risk of kidney disease 59 products had pesticides again cancer causing ones and 100 products had salmonella now the EU flag these products so presumably they did not enter the European market but what about India we are buying and cons consuming these products these contaminated items which makes you wonder what is the regulator doing in India food regulation is done by the fssai the food safety and standards authority of India they function under the Ministry of Health so the buck stops with them how did these products pass their quality checks well the problems are many one is funding the regulator's budget has actually been cut in 2019 around 360 CR rupees was allocated for them by 2022 the allocation came down to 300 crores so money is a problem you need funds to hire more food Commissioners to carry out more checks and to be more Vigilant now 300 crores is around $35 million compare this to the US regulator in America the FDA looks after Food and Drugs and what is their budget more than $6.5 billion they spent around 43 million on offices and Labs alone now we're not saying replicate that but clearly 35 million is not enough not when the health of 1.4 billion people is at risk the second problem is corruption just this week Indian officials arrested an fssai assistant director he was taking bribes from a private lab guess how much money they recovered from him around 1.8 CR rupees these are two things the government can easily address incre the funding and step up vigilance if not these diet plans and Export Ambitions are pointless moving to Belgium it has approved a new labor law for sex workers it's the first country in the world to do so this will give sex workers a lot of Rights they have access to they can have access to healthare they can terminate their contract any time they want they can refuse sexual acts they will enjoy pension benefits the law sets a precedent for other countries in 78 Nations across the globe sex work is legal or partially legal yet when it comes to protections there are none for these people can these nations take a leaf out of Belgium's book our next report tells you it's a first in the entire world Belgium has approved new labor laws for sex workers it gives these workers some new rights they are entitled to health insurance pension unemployment family benefits holidays and maternity leave so like any other job in the world not just that sex workers can now refuse any client they can refuse any sexual act they can also interrupt a sexual act at any time without the fear of dismissal or punishment pimps must provide sex workers with an alarm button in the room if they're not comfortable they can press the button plus they must ensure their safety if the sex workers want to end their contract they can do that without losing their rights to unemployment benefits the new law ensures anonymity for all these workers that way they can apply to any other job without fear of discrimination in 2022 Belgium became the first country to decriminalize self-employed sex work now they've given them employment rights the new law is a world first and it sets a precedent because while prostitution is legal or partially legal legal in 78 countries across the globe when it comes to protections there are few legalizing prostitution was about making it safe it was about giving workers access to healthare or government services instead it turned into a major industry generating millions in taxes but doing little for the workers and this is a situation where it's legal so imagine the situation in countries where it's not but that doesn't mean sex work doesn't exist there it just escapes legal scrutiny and that means more discrimination for the workers governments turn a blind eye to it there's a lack of access to health and safety and that leaves sex workers susceptible to violence and exploitation this makes the Belgian government's move commendable because no matter what governments do sex work exists across the globe and it will continue to exist in the future despite stereotypes and societal attitudes at the end of the day sex work is work which means sex workers are entitled to labor rights just like any other worker this includes the right to Fair wages safe working conditions and protection from discrimination and harassment with this new law Belgium aims to protect these very rights of sex workers regardless of the moral judgments that people may have is West Asia woing Pakistan I know what you're thinking what a strange country to pick Pakistan can't manage its own Affairs why would anyone want to court them maybe for that very reason let me explain in recent weeks Pakistan has seen a flurry of diplomatic visits first the Saudi foreign minister came his job was to speed up Investments how much around $5 billion of it it's part of a largest Saudi program Riyad is expected to invest $25 billion in total days later the Iranian president came Ibrahim RI he visited multiple Pakistani cities he held talks with the top leaders and promised to increase bilateral trade Again by how much from 2 billion to 10 billion after iy came another Saudi delegation it had senior officials from 35 companies they held meetings with leaders of Pakistan's business Community which brings us to present day qatar's foreign minister is in Islamabad he met prime minister Shabah Sharif again the focus was an Investments Sharif urged Qatar to expand its Pakistani portfolio now these are all important visits but the biggest one has not happened yet a visit by Saudi Crown Prince Muhammad bin Salman it is expected between May 10th and May 15th perhaps over the weekend or next week now MBs is traveling to seal the deal his officials have already identify the Investments he will merely sign the agreements and all of this raises the same question why Pakistan there are political and financial reasons politically Pakistan is important for the West for West Asia rather it's a fellow Muslim country not to mention the only Islamic nuclear power Gulf States have often depended on Pakistan for security Saudi Arabia is said to host Pakistani soldiers even Qatar has called on them during the FIFA World Cup Pakistan sent thousands of troops to Qatar other nations sent police officers Pakistan sent soldiers so West Asia will not let Pakistan fail they cannot afford to those are the political reasons now we come to the financial reasons Pakistan is really desperate for Investments so it's a good time to cash in to get some lucrative deals last year Pakistan set up a special investment Council the S sic and what does it do attract and approve foreign investments and here's the main part it is both CI it has both civilian and military officials meaning things get done very quickly no red tape no waiting around for approvals also these new deals are not for loans they are for Investments so Pakistan is looking to privatize a lot of State operations the national carrier is up for sale so are three airports and because Pakistan is desperate you can get a good deal maybe buy it for cheap same with their natural resources Pakistan is handing out Mining and Refinery licenses and Saudi Arabia is eyeing both they're looking to buy some steak in a copper mine in Western Pakistan it's called Rod Riad is also looking to build a refinery in guad it's expected to cost $14 billion now these are safer bets than loans you're getting an asset or resource for your money it's not like a bailout and all of this is happening very fast the announcements the Investments the takeovers it's happening at a very fast pace some Pakistani experts are worried about it like this CEO of Bank of Punjab let me quote Pursuit and haste can do more damage than good with the risk of oscillating towards creating a private sector Monopoly in Li of a public sector in simple words it can be counterproductive yes Pakistan May dump the loss making assets but the gulf companies May monopolize the economy and how should India see all of this well Pakistan is still a bet but India is a proven partner plus the relations have been largely dehy West Asia does not look at India through a Pakistani prism having said that New Delhi should keep a close eye on what's happening there Investments often lead to political support if Gulf Gulf States sink tens of billions into Pakistan they will want to protect their assets and that could mean more support for the Pakistani army of course all of this is incumbent on one major assumption that Islamabad will change its ways that it will act reform its economy so we'll be tracking this story very closely now let's turn to Europe to the country of North Macedonia this is a country in the Balkans home to less than 2 million people it's a multiethnic multi-religious nation and it has just voted against the European Union not directly though it wasn't some EU referendum the people of North Macedonia just voted in internal elections the country went to polls yesterday macedonians voted for a new president in Parliament and the results are out they show the direction the country is headed in here are the winners I'm happy even though I don't know what it means yet I don't know what it feels like to be a president but I do know that I'll do everything I can to defend the interests of the nation this is North macedonia's new president elect the first woman to get elected to the Post but president is a ceremonial position in the country much like in India the real power is held by the country's prime minister in North Macedonia it's likely to be this man Macedonia is free and Macedonia will be Eternal everyone who thought they could ruin Macedonia cause it harm and humiliation will be held responsible and end up in a landfill that's the leader of the winning party Christian mikosi he might be the country's next prime minister his victory speech was quite combative and that is his style perhaps one of the reasons he got elected and that's also the reason that his detractors are afraid afraid of what will happen to North macedonia's EU bid I expect nothing nothing at all why because they will send us back instead of going forward toward the European Union we will head back the country has been trying to get into the EU for decades it became an EU candidate in 2005 but negotiations did not begin until 2022 and why is that because the country has had problems with its neighbors existing EU members like Greece and Bulgaria both countries have vetoed North macedonia's EU membership in the past let's look at the Greek issue first up until 2019 North Macedonia was called the Republic of Macedonia some of you may have heard that name Mac onia it was the homeland of a Greek legend Alexander the Great Macedonia was once a Greek Kingdom it gave birth to Alexander's transcontinental Empire now the thing is ancient Macedonia is not really related to North Macedonia the macedonians of today are not Greek so Greece accused this country of using a misleading name and vetoed its EU membership the naming dispute took decades to resolve it only ended in 2019 with a name change but North macedonia's election winning party wants to go back to the old name we saved ourselves we are no longer North but Macedonia loud and clear the issue of Bulgaria is again about names and recognition the Macedonian and Bulgarian languages are related they have common Roots but North Macedonia had refused to recognize this so Bulgaria vetoed its EU membership the issue is being resolved but the new Macedon Ian government might resume hostilities with Bulgaria which basically means a pause to to an already slow process but that is what North Macedonia voted for so it seems most of the people there are now Euros Skeptics it's another division cropping up in Europe it shows the waning power and promise of the EU a few years ago EU membership was cetted countries were willing to bury the hatchet to become members of the European Union Century old issues were sept under the carpet all to join the exclusive EU Club but now the situation has changed joining the EU is not that appealing anymore people are voting for euros Skeptics even in member countries hungary's Victor Orban the Italian Coalition led by Georgia milone they all promised to put their own country first ahead of the European Union these are the leaders winning power often at the expense of European Unity does this mean the Golden Age of the EU is over the next few European elections will be telling before we begin our last story tonight I have a question for all the women watching this would you rather be alone in the woods with a man or a bear now this is a hypothetical question of course part of an online Trend but it is tearing people apart on social media it has snowballed into a cultural discussion worth getting your teeth into let me show you why would you rather be stuck in a forest with a man or a bear bear man is scary um with a bear what I've heard about bears they don't always attack you right Pro depends what man but probably a bear 100% a bear which is like terrifying to say but definitely a bear some men are very scary out there a bear I would say I would say a man seven out of eight women answered bear with very little hesit now this video has gone viral it has been viewed tens of millions of times and it has innumerable variants this question is being asked across Nations among friends strangers Partners family members and the answer is almost always the same if they're alone in the woods a good number of women would prefer a bear over a man around them and this answer is not sitting well with many but not in the way you would imagine it has sparked anger online especially among men some are calling the question misandrist some say it's an excuse to hate on men some are mansplaining the dangers of bears and some are going back to basics and insulting women for their opinion but a lot of critics are missing the point because news flash this question is not actually about a bear it's about women even considering hypothetical Man versus bear scenarios and then picking a wild animal this shows the extent to which society has failed women this isn't about bears attacking women in the forest this isn't about your National Geographic studies about bears because you watched a lot of it on TV it's not your expertise on how Bears act it's about how men act towards women it's about how women are being assaulted by men it's how women would rather choose being with a bear than being tortured by a man and then being shamed and blamed for the attack afterwards and not even being believed let me show you some numbers according to global data from the United Nations in 2022 89,000 women and girls were killed intentionally every year 38% of all murders of women are committed by their Partners one in every three women is subjected to Violence by a partner such statistics are always chilling they show us the scope of violence against women but even they do little to capture the breadth of abuse women face because these numbers do not include harassment sexual or otherwise but let me remind you women are harassed at work while running while commuting mostly in public but also in private spheres women face threats and that's not the only problem here it is also about everything that happens before and after the abuse women say that with a bear they know what the dangers are if they were attacked by a bear people would believe them they wouldn't ask what were you wearing what were you drinking did you say no we see this time and again with Sur s of rapee and abuse victim blaming is the modus operandi people say women are being hysterical oversensitive humorless Skeptics are everywhere and they're willing to perform all kinds of mental acrobatics only to avoid facing the reality of living in our world as a woman and this is not just a cultural issue there are legal problems too it is difficult to prove sexual crimes and in Many Nations certain assaults on women are not even considered criminal like in the case of marital rape but before you say # notall men let me tell you this is not about men versus women it goes beyond that if an estimated 91% victims of rape are women and 99% of perpetrators are men it is enough to make all women fearful and this is not just common knowledge among women listen to Young Girls asking their fathers the same question should their daughter be alone with a man or a bear pick would you rather have a bear or a man in the woods alone with your daughter uh I rather held a the bear would you rather me out in the woods alone by myself with a man or a bear uh I'd take the bear how come uh you'd have better chance with the bear cuz men are evil girls are often told fairy tales about princesses venturing into the woods where they're scared of a big bad wolf or bear but find comfort in a man their prince charming it is both ironic and sad that in the real world they would rather choose a bear than a man and now it's time for Vantage shots images that tell the story in Brazil animals remain stranded on rooftops amid devastating floods Japan starts hunting fin whales in a bit to scale up commercial whaling and did you know that Lionel Messi's career at Barcelona started with a promise made on a napkin that napkin contract is now up for auction finally we're taking you back in history on this day in 1927 canbera replaced Melbourne as Australia's capital in the early 20th century Australia was trying to decide on a location for its capital Melbourne and Sydney were locked in a rivalry to settle the debate a compromise was reached to build a new city and that city was canura once it was built the capital shifted to canura we're leaving you on that note thanks for watching we'll see you tomorrow B [Music] [Music] [Music] first post reports from the world's second largest continent hello I'm Allison lrange a very warm welcome from Doan South Africa we get you the news and the newsmakers from Africa South Africa goes to the polls on the 29th of May I will track the election and bring you ground reports is it the end of the road for the African National Congress and will former president Jacob zumma stage a dramatic comeback from elections to climate change to Innovations and opportunities as the world's attention shifts we report from Africa the heart of the global South join me every weekday live on first post [Music]

Channel: Firstpost

Views: 300,792

Keywords: firstpost, vantage, palki sharma, vantage palki sharma, first post, firstpost palki sharma, victory day russia, victory day parade, victory day parade russia, russia victory day parade live, russia's victory day parade, russia victory parade live, russia news live, military parde, russia victory day, russia victory day march, victory day in russia, russian victory day parade, russia military parade 2024, russia militray parade live, vladimir putin victory day speech

Id: 6UuPIK2T8Qk

Length: 54min 34sec (3274 seconds)

Published: Fri May 10 2024